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If there has been a positive to the Mets’ uneventful offseason, it has been Dominic Smith’s response to criticism he was out of shape this summer. Reportedly, Smith has lost 12 pounds, admitted he underperformed and said he was determined to get better.

SMITH: Watching his weight. (AP)

All positive developments. Now, it doesn’t mean the Mets won’t consider other options, but perhaps it will make them think twice before they leap. If you’re looking to save money, which the Mets are, a platoon of Smith and Wilmer Flores makes more sense than going after Carlos Santana, who’ll cost plenty but won’t put them back into the playoffs.

“This is something I want to get under control and never make an issue again,’’ Smith told The Post about his weight. “I would rather go through this at 22 than go through this in my prime.

“They drafted me in the first round, so they expect me to be a first-round type player. They expect me to be a star in New York City. Of course, I didn’t live up to the expectations, and I am not going to take that and am upset about that. I know my capabilities and what I’m able to do. I am just going to put it all together and I am going to show the world.

“I definitely have a different mindset coming into next season. I am working my butt off every day continuously and I’m just working. I learned a lot. I got up there for six weeks and I learned from that and I am not taking anything for granted. It’s an honor and pleasure. Every day I get to wake up and play for the New York Mets, it’s an honor and pleasure. You know that you have to work hard. You have to be realistic with a lot of situations, so I definitely am.’’

Other than his nine homers in 49 games last summer, Smith did little to distinguish himself. Even so, the Mets finished 22 games below .500 last year and have a myriad of holes that Santana or Logan Morrison or Adam Lind or Jay Bruce won’t be able to fill.

Forty-nine games is not a big enough window to draw any definitive conclusions on whether Smith will be able to become a viable player, let alone be a star. As much as I’d like to see the Mets be a contender next season, I don’t think they will. There are just too many unanswered questions, of which Smith is one.

However, Smith can stop being a question if he’s given a chance to prove himself over a wider window.

It was a good idea when the Mets first acquired Neil Walker, although I would have preferred they kept Daniel Murphy. A reunion is not a good idea despite the Mets’ crying need for a second baseman.

WALKER: Pass on seconds. (AP)

When the Mets dealt Walker to the Brewers, it was after he accepted a $17.2-million qualifying offer. Walker accepted the offer after negotiations with the Mets broke down. One can reasonably conclude Walker might have hard feelings toward the Mets.

To come back to the Mets expect Walker to want at least two years. Considering his back issues, that’s not a gamble worth taking.

It makes sense if the Mets were expected to contend next summer, but do you really expect them to make up the 22 games they need to get back to .500?

That’s an incredible jump I don’t expect them to make. If the Mets were a serious contender, I’d rather they go after Jason Kipnis or Dee Gordon, or even Ian Kinsler, as has been speculated. Kinsler, 35, has two years left on his contract with Detroit, that will pay him $22 million. The money is doable, but should the Mets commit to a middle infielder at his age?

If age weren’t a consideration, how about Chase Utley, who is 38 but made only $2 million last year. Utley to the Mets would be a delicious sense of irony

Kipnis and Gordon would cost too much both in terms of prospects and/or money, so I don’t see the Mets going that route.

It was rivalry weekend in college football, and while watching Ohio State-Michigan, I couldn’t help but wonder about the Mets’ greatest rivalry. From Day One, there hasn’t been one team that cause Mets’ fans blood to boil over the decades.

A rival is one where the teams compete for the common prize year after year. Often there is bad blood and geography often plays a role. Sometimes there’s a historical event that triggers the rivalry.

The Yankees and Red Sox are a prime example, with the tensions ignited by Boston selling Babe Ruth to New York. Although the Yankees dominated for decades, there was the element of Ted Williams and Joe DiMaggio. In fact, the two superstars were briefly traded for each other in 1947 during a drinking binge between the two owners one night at Toots Shore’s saloon in Manhattan, but was called off the following morning when Red Sox owner Tom Yawkey called the Yankees’ Dan Topping and backed out.

Yawkey did say he’d go ahead with the if the Yankees threw in their rookie left fielder: Yogi Berra.

New York consistently beat out the Red Sox until the Yankees’ historic collapse in the 2004 ALCS. The rivalry still sizzles today, as does Dodgers-Giants and Cardinals-Cubs.

Nothing the Mets have comes close.

With the Mets’ roots planted from the Dodgers and Giants, I wonder wasn’t the interest primarily about fans of the two teams coming out to Shea Stadium to see their old favorites rather than a disdain for either?

Coming into the National League in 1962 with Houston, one would have thought Mets-Astros would materialize, but the teams were so bad until the Mets came out of nowhere in 1969 to win the World Series. That was the same year Major League Baseball realigned into two divisions.

The Astros were just another stop on the schedule until they played in a dramatic NLCS in 1986, won by the Mets. But the sparks from that series turned to be dying embers.

However, Mets’ rivalries varied by the decade.

In 1969 into the early 1970s it was the Cubs. It was the Cardinals in the 1980s. There was compelling baseball played against the Barry Bonds’ Pirates in the early 1990s, but later in the decade and into the 2000s until now the Braves and Phillies created the most tension.

However, the temperature against the Braves and Phillies mostly depended on who is hot at the time. With all three playing under .500, are you really hooked when they play? The same goes for Washington. It’s been ten years since the NL East went down to the final weekend.

What about the Yankees, you ask?

The Yankees’ “rivalry’’ is a manufactured product created by interleague play. They don’t compete in the same division, just in the same city and for the back pages on the tabloids.

Interleague has run its course. It only matters against the Yankees in the World Series.

Let me ask you: When the schedule comes out which games do you circle?

There are a lot of things I am thankful for, notably family and friends. I am sure you are as well. I love writing about baseball, even when you don’t agree with what I print. I am thankful you care enough to read and to take the time to comment.

Thank you, dear readers. I wish you a happy and safe Thanksgiving my friends. One with plenty of laughs.

This is a five-for-one trade, and the Mets would be adding to three voids in the Marlins’ 25-man roster – starting pitching, bullpen and outfield, and in doing so would slice Miami’s payroll.

Cespedes, of course, isn’t near the player of Stanton, but assuming he’s healthy, the Mets would be giving the Marlins a bat of 35-homer potential plus he would be a gate attraction for Miami’s huge Cuban population base. And, considering Cespedes has a home in Vero Beach, Fla., he might be inclined to accept the trade.

The Marlins have a strong outfield of Stanton, Christian Yelich and Marcell Ozuna, but possess little depth, which is why Lagares might be enticing to them.

The Marlins are in desperate need of starting pitching, but they would be taking a gamble about the health of Matz and Harvey. While the Mets have their issues with Robles, he’s not exactly a throw-in.

The Marlins are so desperate to get rid of Stanton’s salary they just might bite on this proposal. As for the Mets, this would be so ballsy of them to pull it off. And, if they did, I promise I wouldn’t rip GM Sandy Alderson ever again.